Every time I get asked the question "what is your guilty pleasure?" I have one answer. No, unlike most girls it's not Kardashians or Real Housewives (not guilty enough). My answer is always Subway. My friends know me to be somewhat of a "foodie" and are often taken aback at my loyalty to the sandwich chain. They are even more aghast when I disclose that my favorite order, and only order really, is tuna. Now, I've hear it all. Yes I'm aware that they repurpose their bread from old yoga mats, no I'm not alarmed by the gross tuna water their tuna salad sits in, yes I'm aware of their spokesperson Jared. I'm not even that guilty about this pleasure to be honest.
Now, Subway and I have gone through some trials and tribulations. My dorm room freshman year sat directly above a Subway store. That means, that enticing bread smell you get when you walk into a Subway, yah that smell was basically engrained into my nostrils. But no, this didn't harm our relationship. In fact, I was pleasantly delighted some mornings when I woke up with a killer hangover to smell these delicious scents. Now my freshman year Subway experience was somewhat thwarted by the "crazy" girl on our floor who worked their. She had built up some unnecessary animosity towards me and my friends so there was always the slight chance you may be poisoned upon visiting. One time she gave me 9-Grain Honey Oat instead of 9-Grain wheat, but I swear the thrill of eating that 6-inch (why lie it was a foot long) and not dying made the endeavor even more rewarding.
The loss of the $5 foot long was a rough one and it definitely strained our relationship. That combined with removal of the Hearty Italian bread was one of the toughest years. But alas, Subway still doesn't fail me at my times of need.
My love of the tuna has inspired me to dive into some recreations myself. I even fell into the trap of jazzing it up a bit. This tuna is so easy to throw together and I bet you have all the ingredients sitting in your fridge or pantry. I also like to skimp on the mayo and go heavy on the dijon. This may not be for everyone, but I love the vinegar taste of dijon mustard with tuna. This is definitely a twist from the traditional tuna salad, but you are guaranteed to enjoy. Also, I love the Genova Canned Yellowfin tuna. My grandmother introduced it to me and once you try it, you'll have trouble going back to your Starkiss. If I'm not using that though, I like the Bumble Bee Chunk Light cans as well.
Ingredients:
2 6oz can of tuna
3 tablespoons red onion diced as finely as possible
1 stalk celery finely diced
1/4 cup mayonaise
3 tablespoons finely diced red bell pepper
4 tablespoons
1/4 dijon mustard
2 teaspoons Old Bay Seasoning
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
4 - 5 banana peppers
2 tablespoons dill relish
1/4 cup black olives diced
salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
2 slices sandwich bread of choice
2 slices of provolone cheese
1 tablespoon melted butter
Mix all ingredients together in a medium bowl aside from the bread, butter, and cheese. Spread melted butter on both sides of bread. Place cheese on bread and top with desired amount of tuna salad. Place sandwich in a panini maker and toast until desire doneness. As a tip, since I no longer own a panini maker, I like to do a little trick. I spread butter on the bread, add the cheese and toast it in a pan like you would make a grilled cheese. I then just separate the bread and add in the tuna salad. I find that grilling the sandwiches in a pan and flipping with the tuna salad can be tricky. So this is a great way to toast the bread and melt the cheese.